What the Disney/Fox Merger Means for the MCU

Yes, Disney is buying Fox for $52 billion. (Aw man, we offered them $49 billion. We were so close!) The deal has huge ramifications for many facets of popular culture; the movies that get made, the television shows that get produced, where all of this content winds up streaming on the internet. Hardcore nerds mostly only care about one thing though: How will this merger will affect the Marvel Cinematic Universe?

Since its inception in 2008, the MCU has been the cinematic home to almost every character from Marvel Comics, with a few notable exceptions. Before Marvel began making their own movies they licensed their characters to other studios; Sony got Spider-Man and Fox got the X-Men and Fantastic Four. With Disney now buying Fox that brings the X-Men and Fantastic Four libraries back under their control for the first time. That, in turn, creates exciting new storytelling possibilities for filmmakers. Will the characters be reintroduced in new MCU versions? Will their Fox versions continue in their own films, but crossover in some way? In this new video essay, ScreenCrush’s Ryan Arey runs down all the possibilities.

If you enjoyed our video on the Disney/Fox merger and the potential fallout in the MCU, check our more of ScreenCrush’s video essays below; we’ve got lots more analysis of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Plus, be sure to subscribe to the ScreenCrush YouTube channel to catch all our future episodes.